It happens out of nowhere.

The pace picks up, stories twist together, and suddenly the book is stuck in your hands. Your eyeballs grow wide and the clock keeps ticking as you go deeper and deeper into the dark hole that sends you straight to the last page.

You know you’ve hit that point if you’re almost skim-reading you’re so excited, if you’re clenching your bladder to avoid bathroom breaks, or you’re constantly flipping forwards to see how much is left before the end.

Here comes the big finish!

AWESOME!

Photo from: here

Are you a robot?

Sometimes I feel like one when I’m texting friends these days. My friendly hellos gets a bit sharp and edgy when they’re digitized in six-point font on tiny screens costing a few cents a message. Suddenly all the pleasant small talk in front of the conversation is chopped off with a hatchet knife and all that’s left is: you guys coming?, yeah 5 mins, k.

That’s what makes it so great when your phone actually rings and it’s someone calling just to say hello. Yes, whether it’s mom checking in before exams, an old college friend calling for no reason, or your brother across the country dropping into your day, it always means the same thing.

Someone’s thinking about you.

AWESOME!

Photos from: here and here

Close call.

You almost had to open that door from the fully-closed position. Hands on doorknobs, fingers on sweaty bacteria, we don’t want that. Good thing you wedged your sneaker in there before it shut completely and saved us alllllllll the hassle.

AWESOME!

Photo from: here

Lettuce is overrated.

Seriously, sandwich place — we don’t need a watery chompful of the pale green gratedness every time we bite into your squashed six-inch sub. Piling two handfuls on there like you’re setting up the stable with straw for the horse to give birth is too much. Hay hay, we’re saying we’ve really had enough of the flavorless green stuff. Cut off the crusts, scrap those nibbles, and let’s get to that bite with all the toppings in it:

1. On a hamburger! Grease glistens on that ketchupy smeared bite of pinkness, with little onions, pickle tasters, and tiny drips of mustard all coating the warm and mealy middle.

2. On a burrito! Helloooo, guacamole. We missed you, sour cream. In this dream scene the white and green combines with blackened chicken chunks, limey rice, and tangy salsa to give you a flavor explosion. Sometimes you get so excited you accidentally eat some of the tin foil by accident. These things happen.

3. On a sundae! There’s nothing sweeter than hitting the perfect ratio of melty vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, clumpy-cold chocolate sauce, and sprinkled nuts for texture. Welcome to the Taste Nucleus. Just close your eyes and enjoy hitting the sweet spot.

4. On homemade anything! Whether it’s the cookie bite with chocolate chips and walnuts or the lasagna chomp where you hit the extra mushrooms and mozzarella, you’re loving that bite with a little bit of whatever mom threw in the pot.

Yes, that bite with all the toppings in it is a magical place sitting in a towering throne that offers glimmering dining room riches you haven’t seen before and may not see again. To get there you must battle through bland bun nibbles, spoon past all-whipped cream bites, and chomp past plain rice or grated lettuce nightmares.

When you hit that bite with all the toppings in it make sure you take a minute to celebrate finally getting there.

You made it to Flavor Paradise.

AWESOME!

Photos from: here, here, and here

We see you, we hear you.

We see those movie endings and we hear those greeting cards. We know the cheesy quotes and we sing those ballads at bars. We feel those preaching choirs and we read those magazine tips. We feel our parents pushing and we hear your chatty lips.

Yes, we know having a boyfriend is great and we know it’s beautiful and kind. But all we’re saying today, and all we’re trying to prove, is that you don’t need a killer girlfriend to have a killer mood.

Let’s chat about ten winning ways to celebrate your solo days:

1. Some like it hot. When you’re on your own you’re the master of the tank and the chances of a random flush scalding your skin is pretty slim. You’re less likely to run out of hot water so just twist that dial and soak into the zone.

2. One set of parents. Sure, you lose out on some inlaw naps but you could gain back holiday budgets, extra bedrooms, and Saturday evenings. Note to any inlaws reading this: This entry is about other inlaws, not you.

3. Take back the night. When you’re bumping around by yourself there’s no need to worry about making too much noise early or late. Tiptoes, quiet TV watching, and softly shutting doors take a backseat to cranking tunes, late-night phone calls, and your big galoomping feet.

4. Don’t be an ass. Single folks have no obligation to do joint Halloween costumes like Beauty and the Beast or the classic two-person donkey. Because don’t we all feel a little bit sorry for that couple dressed as Salt and Pepper shakers leaving the party at 10pm?

5. Flirt like you mean it. Chitchatting with sparkly objects of your desire is good fun. When you’re single ditch the guilt and holler at the busty waitress or chiseled cop. Not only is it exciting, but you’re growing your social skills and constantly meeting new people.

6. Getting to know you. You’re the only you you’ve got. Born and blasted into the world you’re a baby brain who flies through life forming crackly connections with everyone you meet. But getting to know yourself through experiences and deep thoughts adds important shapes and smears to your identity.

7. Bargain basement holidays. Tap your wallet and smile next time you walk by a towering Valentine’s Day display of heart-filled chocolates and pink teddy bears.

8. You can get with this or you can get with that. Are you hungry at 11pm? Get a burger! Are you bored on a Saturday night? Hit the scene! Do you want to free up your busy weekend or busy up your free one? Well the choice is yours! You can get with this or you can get with that. I think you’ll get with this for this is where it’s at.

9. Own your bed, own your life. When you’re single the entire bed is yours and you can test a variety of Starfish poses, Chun-Li leg kick positions, or even the extremely bold diagonal sleeping. (Rarely done.)

10. Embrace your disgusting habits. Clipping your toenails in bed, napping in piles of dirty clothes, or chomping greasy handfuls of potato chips over the sink is fine, fine, fine. The mirror won’t judge you and neither will anybody else.

People, let’s hear it today for being single. Exploring the world, finding adventures, and scoping big scenes are hallmarks of being cool with being you. Because look — falling in love is great and falling in love is nice but that doesn’t mean going alone can’t also be sugar and spice. Good days and bad days, setting suns and shining stars, it’s all about perspective and focusing on who you are. Because if all you need is love, and all love needs is you, then it’s great to relax and enjoy… just being you with you.

AWESOME!

Photos from: here, here, here, here, and here

Good work, Menu Detective.

You finger-picked between standard options and boring choices to find that hidden gem of deliciousness hiding way down in the corner. Now when anyone asks about the food and nods politely you can smile a sneaky smile, clear your throat, wipe your napkin across your lips, and scream out a great big word.

AWESOME!

Photo from: here

I own three bowls.

I don’t really know why I only own three bowls but when I moved downtown two years ago I only had three bowls and I never bothered to bowl up. One for my cereal, one for my soup, and a spare in case of Emergency Ice Cream Sundaes. It’s seemed like a solid plan.

But last night Leslie and her sister were over for dinner and we whipped up some soup and salad. Who loves soup? I do, do. And salad? Me, me, me. Yes, it sounded like a perfect meal, well planned, well tossed, and well … delicious.

It wasn’t until Leslie forked out three heaping bowls of salad did I realize the error of my ways. My delicious soup was getting cold fast on the stove without any bowls to pour it in. Passing around a pot and taking sips seemed a bit too Cavemany and waiting till the salad was done to wash the bowls seemed a bit too Slow.

But then it suddenly hit us.

Mugs!

Yes, mugs really are the backup bowl of the kitchen. Scramble an egg in there, soupify your ice cream, they don’t care. Nope, they are loyal and versatile Ceramic Warriors — ready for war, battle, or holding things, any time of the day.

So after quickly splash-pouring the soup into mugs I tossed each one into the microwave for some good ol’ fashioned nuking to warm them up. And when the ding dinged a few seconds later our dinnertime masterpiece was complete with the mug handle pointed perfectly towards us.

Yes, when the mug stops perfectly with the handle pointing towards you it really is a beautiful moment. Doesn’t matter if you’re heating soup, warming cold coffee, or hotting chocolate. It’s just a tiny sign that the universe is unfolding according to plan.

It means everything is good.

It means everything is right.

And it means everything is most certainly

AWESOME!

Photo from: here

Because they don’t even know they’re playing.

AWESOME!

Three cheers for brothers and sisters.

There’s something beautiful about watching kids holding hands as they cross the street. You’re seeing someone small grow into someone tall. Those hands are the bridge from the stroller to the future, from walking with their parents to walking by themselves.

And those brothers and sisters helping them might be the people they know best their whole lives. From beginning to end, through curves and bends, they’ll remember holding hands on early walks to school, inside the scary movies, and coming home from the pool.

Brothers and sisters helping little ones on their way is a sun-smiling moment of beauty and a tiny little drip of

AWESOME!

I love cool moms.

When I was growing up there was a Sunny D commercial on TV where a gang of kids in backwards caps and jammer shorts roller skates home before helping mom bring in the groceries. When they go inside they search between a fridge packed with cola and purple stuff before pulling out a jug of Sunny D to big cheers. Later they’re chilling under a tree when mom returns with an armload of Sunny D. As the scene closes one of the kids screams out “You got a cool mom!”

And despite the cheesy cheese quality of this old commercial there really is something sweet about finding out your friend has a cool mom. Cool moms are often detected in the wild after displaying some of these familiar characteristics:

· Anywhere, anytime sugar. Cool moms have candy and sugary cereals you don’t have at your house and they’ve got no problem filling your bowl with Corn Pops after a sleepover or letting you drink a big cup of Coke with dinner.

· Grease runs for fun. Loud cheers from the back of the station wagon and the Minivan Applause-O-Meter guide cool moms to ice scream shops and McDonald’s drive-thrus. Six-year soccer teams get sundaes or chip truck fries whenever cool mom is driving them home.

· Steady behind the wheel. Cool moms drive your friends all over the place. She’s your taxi to the mall food court, baseball diamond, or movie theater. Cool moms also take care not to embarrass you in front of your friends by controlling the bad jokes and goodbye kisses. Sometimes they slip you an extra fiver, too.

· Lax sleepover policies. She knows you and your teenage friends will watch the R-rated movie in the basement anyway so cool mom doesn’t fuss much with the ratings or the extra half hour of TV before bed. Let the kids talk a bit during the sleepover, she figures. Nobody’s getting hurt.

· Anonymous phone-a-friend always open. Cool moms give off sparkly vibes of open-mindedness that let kids know their questions won’t be judged. Cool moms take your friend for her first tampons, help you call the neighbor after tossing a ball through their window, and are always around to chat about anything serious.

When you have a friend with a cool mom you’re loving it lots, baby. They’re usually found upstairs at that one house everyone always hangs out at. Now, if you’re a cool mom your house sure is full of big smiles, loud laughs, and happy kids. You value the best things in life and live to love for years and years and years.

Hey, cool moms! Guess what? You’re

AWESOME!

Photos from: here, here, here, and here